The Shattered Time
by Amber Skye
Summary: (Slight AU) It began when the Titans discovered the dead body of someone who should not have existed. As the circumstances surrounding the murder slowly unraveled before them, they found themselves caught up in something that would decide their future...
1. Introduction

_---- THE SHATTERED TIME ----_

_by  
Amber Skye_

* * *

It had been quite some time since Robin had heard from the Chief of Police.

Vigilantes though they were, he and his fellow Titans had established a fairly good relationship with the city's police department. It was almost an unspoken agreement that the Titans were unofficial members of the police force themselves, although neither group interacted very much with the other. Each let the other be, still relying on each other's strength and support to keep the city under control, but working independently for the most part.

It was a small surprise then when Robin received the transmission from Chief Barret himself. Robin took a seat in front of the video screen, nodding in recognition as the officer's face appeared. "Afternoon, Chief. It's good to hear from you again."

The older gentleman nodded back, keeping his expression serious. "Afternoon, Robin. I'd say it usually depends on what the news is, as to whether or not it's good to hear."

The Chief was a distinguished man in his late forties, his dark hair lined with gray and more than a few wrinkles showing on his weathered face. Two rather large ears poked out from the side of his head, in contrast to the rest of his thin features. Deep eyes were set above a long nose, and a graying mustache was trimmed neatly above the stern mouth.

Robin frowned at the officer's statement. "Is something wrong, Chief?"

"Hard to say," Barret answered, leaning back slightly in his own chair. "We got a call late last night from an old lady named Ms. Malcolm. You wouldn't happen to know her, would you?"

Robin shook his head.

Chief Barret nodded, unsurprised at the answer. "Didn't think so. She lives downtown in an old house by herself, and last night she found a dead body in her basement. That's the reason I'm calling. I think you might want to come downtown and take a look yourself."

Robin's eyebrows shot up. A dead body? That was something the homicide department usually took care of. He and the Titans were fighters—they dealt with living criminals and illegal activity as it was happening, not murders that had taken place days ago.

Seeing his silent reaction, the chief gave a tired half-smile. "I know what you're thinking, and you're right. This isn't something I would notify you about. But let's just say this is an exception."

Nodding slowly, Robin agreed. "Do you need all of us there?"

"That's fine," Chief Barret replied, "I'll explain more when you arrive. The body is being held in the Lain Street Hospital morgue. Meet me there in an hour."

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Cyborg drove the T-car, as usual, while Robin followed on his Redbird cycle. When Cyborg had built the T-car, he'd only made room for the driver and four passengers; since Terra's arrival, there wasn't enough space for all six Titans to squeeze into the custom-built vehicle.

At the moment, Terra was sitting in the passenger's seat next to Cyborg. She glanced into the backseat, feeling a pang of sympathy for Starfire, who had been banned from riding in the front seat of the car after playing with the buttons one time too many. Right now the alien girl was stuck in the center, the only barrier between an over-exuberant shape shifter and a telekinetic empath who was rapidly becoming annoyed.

Eventually one of the seatbelts came alive, enshrouded in black, and began wrapping itself around Beast Boy's mouth (which up to that point had not once been silent). This led to a heated argument between Raven and Beast Boy, with frequent interjections from Cyborg telling them not to damage anything in his car while they were fighting.

Terra was quite relieved when they finally reached their destination.

Robin led the way into the hospital, and the entire group of teens was immediately greeted by Chief Barret, who had obviously been waiting for them. He gave them all a quick nod and greeting, then turned to escort them down to the morgue. As they drew away from the crowded bustled of the main hospital floor and down to the more deserted basement halls that housed the morgue, Barret began to explain, speaking especially to Robin.

"The body has been dead for no more than a day. Male, probably mid to late thirties. Cause of death was blood loss from a fatal wound." The chief paused, shaking his head. "Poor guy had a hole in his chest the size of my fist."

Robin raised an eyebrow, looking up at the officer. "Forgive me, Chief, but none of this is sounding very exceptional. Why did you need us here?"

Barret moved to open a door marked with the number forty-eight and gestured for the group of teens to move through. "Robin," he asked, a strange note in his voice, "Do you have any close relatives?"

Robin stopped mid-stride, taken aback by the sudden, personal question. He had never disclosed any family relations to anyone—not even the rest of the Titans knew if Robin had immediate relatives. It was not something he thought about much, and certainly not anything that he would disclose. He had learned quickly that when pursuing the course of a vigilante, hiding true identity was often very necessary.

He was spared the need to answer as Barret shook his head and waved him on. "Sorry, I know it's none of my business, and it shouldn't be. But I don't know how else to explain it."

"Explain what?" Robin demanded.

They crossed the threshold and moved into a small room. The still form of the body lay on a hard table, draped in a white cloth. Chief Barret moved to pull down the covering from the face. "When the autopsy results came back, all of them—the blood type, DNA tests, fingerprints—came back as you, Robin."

The figure was as the chief had explained earlier—a male in his mid to late-thirties, his body tall and muscular, the pale face framed by shoulder-length black hair.

As she caught a clear glimpse of the body, Starfire gasped audibly. Her eyes grew wide and transfixed, and she began trembling.

Robin was still stunned by what the chief had just said. "What do you mean, all the tests came back as me?"

Barret took a step back so the Titans could inspect the body more closely. "Like I said, we took blood type, DNA samples, and all that. And you know we have your records on hand, Robin. They all matched. Everything scientific says that man can only be one person—you. But we all know who you are, so I have no idea how to explain it."

Cyborg had been studying the facial features of the dead man. "He looks like you, Robin."

"Yeah, an old you," Beast Boy piped up. "Like he was your dad, or something."

"That's not possible, and it still doesn't explain the test results," Robin answered.

Chief Barret was glancing at each Titan. "None of you have seen him before, then. You don't know who he is?"

Now Robin understood the Chief's earlier query about his relatives. "I'm sorry, I'm as confused about it as you are," Robin sympathized. Upon turning to face the officer, he saw Starfire out of the corner of his eye. The frightened look on her face alarmed him. "Star? You okay?"

When she did not reply, Robin turned back to Chief Barret. "Ah, do you think we could have a few minutes?"

The chief nodded, agreeing quickly and moving towards the exit. "Just let me know when you're all ready to leave, and I'll send someone down to lock up."

"That is Nightwing!" Starfire blurted when Chief Barret had gone. "He is you, Robin, he is the you that I saw when I fell into the future and the drifting had happened!"

As everyone gaped at Starfire's outburst, Terra placed hands on hips. "Okay, I'm ready for an explanation."

Ever eager to please, Beast Boy quickly launched into long-winded, hard-to-follow detail. "Okay, we're fighting the bad guy, right? Some whacked-out dude who calls himself Warp and comes from the future with these weird time-portal thingies. Anyway, he comes in to steal the stuff, but he totally gets busted because we were all waiting for him! So then he fires off all these techno gadget whatchamacallits from his future place, and beats the living daylights out of everybody! Except me, of course, since I was onto his little scheme..." Puffing up his chest and grinning like a weasel, Beast Boy took a deep breath to continue explaining how he had saved the day, but promptly found himself cut off as Raven explained properly.

"During one of our battles, Starfire accidentally fell through a time portal and went twenty years into the future. She made it back safely, as you can see, but while she was there she had encounters with all of our future selves."

Beast Boy stood, a vein pulsing in his neck as he glared venom at Raven for stealing his spotlight.

Starfire was shaking her head. "I do not understand how Nightwing can be here, or why he has been killed."

"Do you think Warp had something to do with it? He's the only one I can think of who would be able to cross time barriers." Cyborg reasoned.

"But Warp's gone," Beast Boy argued. Then he grinned, having thought of something funny. "Heh, he's _history_! Get it?"

The terrible pun was ignored by his teammates, who were lost in thought.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Terra looked insulted at the explanation her teammates had offered. "Time travel is impossible!"

Robin gave a somber half-smile. "You'd be surprised at the impossible things we've managed to do."

His statement was followed by a long moment of silence. Finally, Cyborg turned away from the body to face the black-haired teen. "What're we going to do about this?"

Shaking his head, Robin moved to put the cover back over the body. "I don't know yet."

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	2. Intruder

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Evening sometimes seemed to be the time of day when the streets of the city were busiest. As the sun set, sidewalks became crowded with people on their way home from work, or running errands before the shops closed for the night. The streets suddenly seemed too small to hold the teeming vehicles that were somehow all hurrying in the same direction—no matter which direction it was. In the bustle of chaos that was so familiar, few took notice of a single individual, despite his unique appearance and unwarranted behavior.

He pelted through the crowds of people, eyes wide with confusion and fear as he glanced back and forth and over his shoulder. His arms were crossed over his chest, clutching the device close to his body, as though to protect it from something unseen. With a sudden turn of direction, he darted into traffic, barely noticing as an oncoming car swerved to avoid him. Even when he barreled into a street vendor's small cart and knocked it over, he did not stop.

Something had gone wrong—terribly wrong. He was not in the place he was supposed to be. But how could it not have been right? He had been so careful, calculating everything down to the last decimal, checking and rechecking.

But this was too _soon_. Somehow, he had come back too soon, too far from the time when he needed to be, and he was suddenly realizing that he did not know how to go forward again....

As if to make up for this subconscious realization, he redoubled his pace, as though moving forward as fast as he could through this horizontal space would somehow make up for it, somehow fix what had gone wrong. And as he neared the edge of the city, he saw something that had long ago been deserted and destroyed, something that should no longer have been there.

The silhouette of Titan Tower, rising above the shoreline.

He stopped in his tracks, panting, staring at the tall building that only served to confirm the fact that he was not where he should be.

Sinking to his knees in the middle of the sidewalk, he let the device slip to the ground as he hunched over, feeling a stinging heat behind his eyes. Blinking it away, he stared down at the device that was supposed to have made everything right again...

He fought the rising urge to smash the device to pieces with his own fist. It had lied to him, it had brought the promise of happiness to him, and then it had brought him _here_, to this place where he was not supposed to be. It was this cursed thing that had caused the accident, and so it was the fault of this device that Nightwing had died.

_Nightwing was right_. The thought surfaced in his mind far too late. _Nightwing_...

He suddenly choked on a sob as his mind cleared for the first time in six long years, remembering everything his friend had tried to tell him, all the comfort Nightwing had tried to give. He looked down at his hands as though he could see the guilt written on them. He had pushed that friendship away, blocked out the truth, fallen into the illusion that he could bring her back and make everything the way it used to be. And when he had tried to make that illusion a reality, he had only succeeded in bringing about more suffering.

He lifted his head to meet the fading right light of the sun as it began to set behind the dark Tower's silhouette. And as he gazed at the Tower through unshed tears, something else took hold of his mind. An idea suddenly sprang into existence in the back of his thoughts, and from it the fever began to spread once again.

Yes, he could still make it work, he could fix it, make it better. Now he looked back down at the device, and suddenly it was the same glorious thing that it had been all along. It was the salvation that would bring her back...

He was running again, clutching the precious device to his chest as though to protect it. But he was no longer glancing around him wide-eyed with fear. His gaze was fixed straight ahead, on the outline of the very familiar tower...

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It took the rest of the day for the Titans to finish the business with the police department and Nightwing's body. By the time they finally arrived back at the Tower, the sun had already set.

Robin pulled his cycle into the garage at the base of their home, gearing to a stop next to the T-car and his teammates gathered near it. As he pulled off his helmet, his ears were greeted with an angry tirade from Cyborg. The large teen was half inside the rear passenger's side, inspecting something in the backseat of his car and apparently unhappy with what he had found.

"Beast Boy!" he was yelling. "You got your teeth marks all over the seatbelt!"

"It's not my fault!" the shape shifter argued, making a leap onto the roof of the car, and then dangling upside-down over the side to peer at Cyborg. "Raven's the one who tried to suffocate me with it!"

The empath in question was standing a few feet away, arms folded, eyes glaring from beneath her hood. "Maybe if Beast Boy had the courtesy to be a little quieter for those of us who actually _use_ our brains for thought and meditation, this wouldn't have happened."

"Hey!" the green Titan's head shot up to glare at Raven.

Cyborg glanced up at the green face dangling in front of him, then let out a yelp. "Gaaah! Get offa there! You're gonna get boot-marks all over my baby!" He made a wide swipe at Beast Boy's dangling form, forcing the smaller boy to jump off.

As the argument continued, Robin dismounted his cycle and placed the helmet on the seat. Catching sight of Starfire and Terra, who were moving away from the noisy garage and into the Tower, he followed them.

Giving a sigh, Robin tried not to listen as the three arguing Titans began to follow suit. They had just spent a day examining his own dead body and coming up with no leads or information, and he knew that it had left everyone's tempers a little short. But listening to his friends release their frustrations through petty arguments wasn't something he had the patience for at the moment. He needed to work off some energy and let his head clear a little bit. Intent on heading to the gym for a workout and some peace and quiet, he moved past the rest of his teammates as they all began to settle in the main room of the Tower.

But his evening workout would never happen. As he moved through the main room, something caught his eye. Glancing to his left, he stopped for moment to regard one of the houseplants that Raven kept. It was a spider plant, not very big, but full with its characteristic long, curling leaves that spread outward from its center, much like the gangly appendages of a daddy-long-legs spider. Thus, the reason for the plant's name.

Usually Robin didn't pay much attention to whatever plants or other decorations were in the tower, but his powers of observation were something to be feared. Even though he had only ever glanced at the plant before, he could tell that something was different about it—something that probably shouldn't be.

Altering his path, he crossed the room to stand in front of the small table on which it rested. He narrowed his gaze and focused on one of the leaves, which was broken. Touching a finger to the snapped portion of the stem, his glove came off with a spot of liquid on it, meaning that the break had been very recent, most likely within the last hour. On the table beneath the plant, Robin could also see a crescent shape of clear wood outlined with dust, indicating that the pot had been shifted slightly.

"Everybody be quiet," he said quickly. Although his voice was lowered, his tone had become serious and commanding. None of his teammates had any trouble hearing what he said, and his manner immediately ensnared their complete attention.

"What's wrong now?" Cyborg asked, slightly annoyed that his lecture to Beast Boy and Raven about fighting in his car had been interrupted.

Turning to regard them all with a tense gaze, Robin answered quickly, "Raven, when was the last time you watered this plant?"

She blinked at him for a moment before answering. "A few days ago. Why?"

Beast Boy made an exasperated noise. "Robin, what are getting all worked up over a house plant's watering schedule for?"

"I said quiet, Beast Boy!" the dark-haired teen glared at the offending team member. "Someone else has been here."

For a moment, silence greeted his statement. Then Terra raised an eyebrow. "Okay...so did the plant tell you that?"

At this statement, Starfire's eyes lit up and she clapped her hands in amusement. "How wonderful! Robin, I did not know that you practiced the art of leaf-speaking!" She gained a reminiscent look. "On my home planet, such a skill is most common! I had many pleasant conversations with the _morpalgrar _bush in my parent's home. But I had never thought your earth-plants were intelligent enough to perform the leaf-speaking with humans! Tell me, with which species do you most often converse?" Starfire glanced around at her friends, a smile plastered on her face...until she realized they were staring at her.

Cyborg gave a wide, mischievous grin. "Hey, Robin, maybe Starfire can give you tips on talking with the plant. Then you can get straight to the _root_ of the problem! Ha!" Terra and Beast Boy immediately joined him in breaking into laughter.

Ignoring their guffawing teammates, Raven turned the conversation back to Robin. "Are you sure about this? I'm not sensing anyone else's presence."

"Yeah," Beast Boy piped up, halting his laughter just long enough to be skeptical. "And I don't smell anything weird. If there were other people in the tower, they would have left behind a different scent."

"I wouldn't have said it if I weren't sure," Robin answered. "There was somebody else here, very recently, too."

Cyborg's smile immediately faded as he realized the matter was truly serious. He gave a moan. "Man, I installed finger-print access security on the front door! Nobody else can get in here except one of us."

Robin shook his head and glanced up at the larger teen. "Well there's no sign of forced entry, so whoever it was got through the finger-print access without a problem. All security activations are recorded in the tower's main computer, right Cyborg?"

Cyborg nodded, "Yeah..."

"Can you check the records? I want to know if you can find out exactly when they got in, and whether or not they left. In the meantime, we have to assume there's an intruder in here. Raven, Beast Boy, can you two start searching the tower? See if they took anything, or left something behind."

The two teens nodded and quickly disappeared from sight, Raven floating upward to phase through the ceiling and begin a search of the upper levels, while Beast Boy headed for the hallway, his nose in the air and his ears twitching as he tried to pick up any sense of their uninvited guest.

Robin, Terra, and Starfire crowded around Cyborg as he wheeled a chair over to the main computer and activated his security system. "Got it," Cyborg proclaimed a moment later, pulling up an information box on the screen. "Exact time of entry, just over a half-hour ago. You were right, Robin."

"Any idea who it might have been?"

"Yeah, just a sec, let me see..." Typing in a few more commands, Cyborg watched the screen intently. As the information he was looking for blinked into existence, his single human eye widened.

"So?" Terra leaned around him, trying to get a closer look for herself. "Who was it?"

The answer didn't come for a long moment. When it did, Cyborg's voice held a note of disbelief. "Me..."

For a moment, the group was silent. Then Robin spoke. "What do you mean, it was you?"

Emitting a strange grunt of frustration and confusion, Cyborg raised a metal hand to point at a block of data displayed in front of them. "See, look, right there, that's my ID number based on the finger-print security input. The computer says it was my print that granted security access. I opened that front door and walked into this tower half an hour ago."

"But you did not," Starfire said from her floating position as she peered over their heads at the screen. "You were outside our home with the rest of us."

"Is the clock set to the wrong time?" Robin suggested. "Maybe it means just a few minutes ago, when we got in."

"No, the clock is fine," Cyborg drew another information box up next to the first one. "Look, here's our entry five minutes ago. It's fine. The system is functioning perfectly."

"Then someone must have figured out how to get inside using your fingerprint somehow," Terra put in.

"How can anybody use my fingerprint? My fingerprint is the natural imperfections in the metal plating on my hand!" Cyborg was typing faster now, checking several data references. "You can't duplicate something like that."

"Well somebody did," Robin stated matter-of-factly. "Is there any record of them leaving?"

After another moment and three more data screens, Cyborg gave the smaller teen a serious sidelong glance. "No. Whoever got inside must still be here."

Grimacing, Robin pulled his communicator out of his belt and clicked on the speaker. Normally he would just activate the loudspeaker for the entire Tower, but he didn't want to alert the intruder that they knew of his presence and were searching for him. Their advantage now was the fact that they knew their own home better than the intruder would, and could take him by surprise.

He spoke into the small device, knowing Raven and Beast Boy would hear the message from their own communicator speakers.

"Raven, Beast Boy, we definitely have someone inside the Tower. The rest of us are joining the search, activate communications if you find them."

Cyborg turned with the other three Titans as they moved away from the computer station to spread out through the Tower. He mumbled something about beating the stuffing out of hackers, and motioned that he was going to head for the upper levels.

Robin gave a quick nod and moved down the opposite side of the hallway, Starfire and Terra at his heels.

"So, let me get this straight," Terra said as she followed Robin for a short distance. "First of all, we find your future self dead, then the computer says Cyborg was here in the tower a half hour before he could have been. Tell me I'm not the only one who thinks this is seriously weird?"

"You're not the only one," Robin gave her a smile that was only half-sincere and took a turn, leaving Terra to search on her own.

She paused for a moment. Being the newest member of the group, she wasn't as familiar with the layout of the tower as the rest of the Titans were, but due to her own past experience, she did know something about breaking and entering, and hiding in the midst of the enemy. "If I were an intruder, where would I hide?" she mused softly, faced with the decision of picking a direction. Allowing herself a small chuckle with the irony of the question, Terra moved towards one of the larger, more frequently used rooms, giving the answer aloud for no particular reason. "In plain view, of course."

The rec room was dark, the shadows of training equipment visible with the light from the open doorway. Flicking on the light switch, Terra gave the room a sweeping glance, finding nothing out of the ordinary. Several more rooms yielded the same results, until she had a strange burst of inspiration. Someone had managed to override Cyborg's security system, using his own access code, no less. If anyone was that technologically inclined, it might follow that they could be after some of the more highly developed and advanced technology that Cyborg created and used in the tower. "All techno-geeks think alike," she said to herself, heading down a stairway with her new idea of where to search.

Robin had just cleared the second floor of the tower when his communicator went off, and Terra's voice crackled to life.

"Ah, you guys probably all want to come down here _now_."

Surprised at her tone of voice, Robin tried to discern the emotion behind it. There seemed to be more disbelief and shock than fear. As he pulled the communicator from his belt to respond, she spoke again.

"I'm in the basement computer lab, you know, the one where Cyborg keeps all his crazy gadgets."

Robin turned on his feet, heading for the stairwells that would lead him to the basement. He heard the communicator go off again as Raven responded to Terra's message with a short acknowledgement, but didn't bother to initiate a communication himself.

As he cleared the last staircase and turned the corner, he could see Terra standing outside the closed door to Cyborg's lab. She glanced up at him as he came into view and emitted a short laugh, which wasn't really a laugh at all. "You can tell Cyborg to quit checking his security system. It's working perfectly."

Robin's eyebrow shot up as he stepped closer to her and the doorway. "What do you mean?"

She jerked a thumb towards the door. "Take a look for yourself. Our intruder is Cyborg."

As if on cue, the Titan she had just mentioned came barreling down the stairwell, part of his arm making mechanical whirring sounds as it shifted and repositioned itself to open the sonic cannon. "All right! Where is he?" He stopped at the bottom, scrutinizing the two Titans who were already there as though they were hiding the intruder from him. "Come on, let me at him. I'll teach him to mess with my security systems!"

A circular patch of the ceiling above them suddenly grew into a swirling mass of darkness, through which Raven promptly descended. The darkened space lingered for a moment even after she had fully emerged, the reason for which quickly became obvious as a green changeling dropped through after her, landing lightly in a crouch.

Now allowing the black vortex above her to dissipate, Raven turned to regard the cybernetic Titan. "Calm down," she remarked flatly.

The larger teen shot her a dark look, unsure as to whether her statement was due to the fact that she had heard his rant, or that she could sense his emotions. "I will calm down," he replied, "_After_ I've taught this punk a lesson about breaking and entering on _my_ turf!"

"What is this turf that has been broken?" A voice floated down from the stairwell, its echo followed by a worried-looking Starfire. "Can we not repair it?"

"Something's going to be broken all right," Cyborg muttered, "Namely, this intruder's neck."

"Enough, Cyborg," Robin answered. He was now leaning into the doorframe and gazing wide-eyed through the slightly opened door. "Something tells me you're not going to want to hurt this guy."

"Say what?" Cyborg deactivated his cannon and moved to peer through the crack over Robin's head. Terra moved aside, giving the rest of her teammates room as they all moved to crown around the doorway, trying to see.

The figure in the room was indeed Cyborg—but not the Cyborg that they knew as their comrade. This one was taller, older, more mature. He wore less metal plating; only a part above his left eye was still covered with the metal, extending down the side of his face and neck. One whole arm seemed to have been completely restored, while the other remained artificially enhanced. The clothes that he wore were wrinkled and disheveled, as though he had slept in them. At the moment, he was bent over one of Cyborg's worktables, concentrating wholly on a small, cylindrical device and muttering as he made adjustments to it. His manner had a feverish aura about it.

"It's Cyborg..." The tone behind Robin's voice was incredulous.

Crowded out by Starfire, Cyborg, and Robin, Beast Boy hadn't had a chance to look inside yet. He had his ear against the door and was listening intently. "Are you sure?" he answered uncertainly. "He keeps talking to himself, and saying 'Victor'."

"That's _my_ name..." Cyborg didn't know what to think.

Raven was still standing a small ways back from the doorway, emotionless and logical as always. "This explains why I couldn't sense any foreign presences in the tower, and why Beast Boy didn't catch his scent."

For a moment, everyone was silent. Then Robin took a step back from the door and glanced at his teammates. "Whether he's Cyborg or not, right now he's still an intruder. And I, for one, want to know what he's doing in our tower."

"First we have found Robin's older self, and now we have found Cyborg's older self." Starfire spoke quietly. "You do not think this Cyborg might have had something to do with..." She trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence and its implications.

"We don't know anything for sure yet," Robin answered. He remained silent for a moment, then with a slight nod to his teammates, he pushed through the door.

Expecting the older Cyborg to give some sort of reaction as he entered the room, Robin was a little confused when he seemed to take no notice at all. Taking several more steps, Robin stood in plain view, looking intently at the man hunched over and hard at work. He heard his teammates footsteps behind him as they followed his example and entered the room slowly.

Still, the older Cyborg took no notice.

Not knowing what else to do, Robin made a quiet inquiry. "Cyborg...?"

Again, no response. Robin was amazed at how intense his focus must be if he still hadn't noticed them.

Quite suddenly, Raven's voice spoke up from behind him, using the name that Beast Boy had mentioned. "Victor?"

At the sound of his name, Victor suddenly glanced up in shock, then went deathly still, his human eye widening as he stared at Raven. He took a halting step forward, stretching out a hand. "Raven?" the voice came in a whisper of disbelief.

Raven's face darkened with uncertainty as his strange reaction to her. A barely discernible white glow began hinting behind her eyes as she drew slightly on empathic abilities. "He's not thinking clearly," she stated softly, "His emotions are fluctuating and his thought processes are detached."

"No..." Victor was whimpering to himself, even as he continued to gaze unblinking at the smaller, cloaked figure. His muttered, broken sentences made no sense. "This is wrong, too soon! It's not Raven, it didn't work, this is all wrong..."

Robin moved forward with a quick step. "Victor," he said softly. He didn't want to scare him, especially if he was in an unstable condition emotionally and mentally.

Victor's attention suddenly snapped to the black-haired teen, the human eye widening with fear. "You!" Suddenly he was backing away, clutching the device to him protectively. "Oh, god, you can't be here, you're dead!"

Robin halted, alarmed.

Victor's gaze was not shifting erratically between each teenager that stood before him. "No, it's too soon, and you're all alive again...because it's too soon...this isn't where it's supposed to be..." He glanced back down at the device in his hands.

The mutterings about people who were supposed to be dead, and the fact that their intruder was brandishing an unknown device were starting to make Robin feel very unsettled. This person before certainly wasn't the Cyborg that they knew, and he wasn't proving himself to be someone that they could reason with. And Robin decided that he didn't want to wait and see what Victor wanted to do with his strange machine in order to remedy the situation where he thought certain people shouldn't be alive anymore.

Extending a hand, Robin spoke in a commanding voice. "Let me see what you have there, Victor."

The older man's eyes shot up, locking on the smaller boy.

Robin nodded, his expression still serious as he tried to reassure the intruder by repeating things he had mumbled before. "Everything's fine, you don't have to worry about 'where it's supposed to be'. Just give me your machine..."

"No!" Victor screamed suddenly. He whipped the device up in front of him protectively, angrily, and something activated.

Before anyone knew what was happening, the device was glowing with a static, purple light. The light was shooting outward rapidly, expanding like a shield in front of Victor. And Robin was right in its way.

For an instant, Robin was encased in the strange purple shield of light, his body taking on a similar hue. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, the light suddenly faded, taking any trace of the dark haired teen with it.

Robin was gone.

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Author's Notes: Okay, I needed to use a different name for the older Cyborg, because I didn't want it to get confusing. I don't actually know his original character's real name, but I've heard him referred to as Victor Stone somewhere...so I used that. Sorry if I got it wrong.


	3. Aftermath of a Disappearance

Author's Notes: Okay, I know it's been forever since I updated this, and I apologize. The main reason for the long delay was school, and then when I finally had time to work on it again, the story wasn't flowing. As such, I'm not particularly happy with this next segment, but I'm also tired of re-writing it. C So it's getting posted. Hope it's all right with everyone!

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The group of young vigilantes stood, shocked and silent, at the sudden disappearance of their leader. The room was heavy with disbelief as the stunned spectators found themselves at a loss.

Victor was staring, wide-eyed, at the place where Robin had stood. He still clutched the device, his hands now trembling as he stood riveted, unable to break his gaze from the empty space before him.

Someone spoke. A soft voice, tinged with doubt and grief. Starfire's voice.

"Robin…"

And with that, the atmosphere shattered. Cyborg gave a tremendous yell of frustration and anger, surging forward on his older self. "What the hell did you _do_?"

Victor saw him coming, his haunted eyes shifting to the rage-filled face of his younger self. He did not move.

Cyborg smashed into Victor, slamming him against the wall and cuffing his neck with a metal fist. "What did you do to Robin?"

Suddenly Victor's mind was clouded again, fear and anger pushing their way forth in his emotions, just as they had when Robin had tried to take the device. "No!" Victor shouted, grasping at Cyborg's fist with his free hand and raising the device with the other. "_No!_"

"Cyborg!" Beast Boy yelled, bounding across the room, his form changing into that of a tiger in a smooth motion. Extended claws slashed at Victor's arm as the device was aimed at Cyborg's face and starting to glow again…

Beast Boy felt the impact of his own clawed hand against flesh, smelled the blood as it sprang forth from the wound, heard the hard pang of metal as he struck the device from its owner's grasp. It clattered to the floor, now scarred with three long claw marks and a spattering of crimson, the glow immediately dying.

Cyborg fell a few steps back at Beast Boy's sudden attack. Victor gave a cry of pain and literally crumpled in front of them, clutching the wounded arm tightly to his chest and curling into himself as he fell to his knees.

Unaffected, Cyborg was immediately at Victor's throat again, hauling the larger man halfway to his feet. Victor hung limply, almost sobbing, as the Titan shook him forcibly.

"_What did you do to Robin?!?"_

Raven was suddenly across the room, yanking her hood down and glaring angrily at Cyborg. "Stop it!" she hissed, looking about ready to throttle the enraged teen herself. Emotions were running high and rampant, and she wasn't coping well with having to feel the strong effects. "His condition is already unstable, and you're making it worse! You're not going to get anything out of him that way."

For a moment, Cyborg looked as though he were debating the idea of flinging Raven halfway across the room. Instead, he gave a disgusted snort and dropped his older counterpart. Victor hit the ground on his knees and folded over, arms clinging into his chest, his head nearly touching the floor.

All was silent again, save for Cyborg's heavy, angered breathing and Victor's muted sobs.

Raven knelt beside the man's nearly prone figure, her face and eyes hard with emotion. She stretched out a hand and placed three fingers on his forehead, murmuring. Her eyelids fell closed as a barely discernible aura of black sparked beneath her hand.

Victor whimpered and his shoulders slumped farther forward.

Raven remained motionless, but her murmuring became audible. "…control it, Victor…you need to get past this…this isn't who you are…"

Whimpering.

"…then _tell_ me who…"

Silence.

"…find it…"

Sobbing.

"…_find it_…"

Cyborg was standing, ignoring his surroundings, his human eye glaring away into space as he breathed heavily, angrily.

Starfire didn't seem to have the strength to hover anymore as she stood where Robin had disappeared, her knees looking to collapse, a painfully forlorn look etched on her face.

Beast Boy crouched, one arm extended slightly, spattered lightly with red. His free hand held it near the elbow, as though it pained him somehow. His wide eyes darted nervously from Raven, to Cyborg, to Starfire, to the cold device on the floor.

Terra stood behind them all, blue eyes seeing, and disbelieving.

Raven murmured.

Victor choked on a sob.

Raven stiffened with a subtle movement, her violet eyes opening halfway and the white behind them dying as she pulled her fingers away from the larger man's forehead, the black aura between them swiftly dissipating. And it was in the next instant that Victor slumped forward, a breathy gasp escaping his throat as he hit the harsh floor in a dead weight.

Beast Boy's and Terra's eyes widened simultaneously.

Raven was suddenly on her feet and step backward from the prone body. Her cloak shifted once, as though her body shivered underneath, and she took a deep breath.

Terra extended a hand, hesitant. "Rae…?"

"He's dead." A cold blank snapped back into Raven's demeanor, and any evidence of her close proximity to the man's moment of death was gone.

"What?" Beast Boy gripped his arm tighter.

Cyborg was immediately on top of Raven. "No! We need him! We need to know what he did to Robin!"

The dark-haired girl glared up at him narrowly. "We wouldn't have gotten anywhere. He was mentally unstable. Even when I probed his mind, I couldn't help him focus his thoughts."

A pair of green eyes slowly turned in their direction as Starfire pulled her gaze away from where Robin had disappeared. "Nightwing…now Robin…and future Cyborg…"

"Why…how could he…just…die?" Beast Boy's voice sounded almost shaky. He glanced down at the reddish stain that had seeped into Victor's sleeve, at the crimson droplets that clung to the metal of the device, at the same spattered liquid that covered part of his hand.

Raven gave him a look, and behind the ever-solid emotionless mask was something…comfort? "It had nothing to do with what you did, Beast Boy," she answered calmly.

After a moment, he nodded, mute.

"No, no, no, no, _NO!_" Cyborg let forth a cry of frustration and slammed a metal fist at the nearest wall. He took no satisfaction in the resulting noise. "We need to know what he did!"

"Raven?" Starfire's voice sounded timid in comparison to Cyborg's shouting, and she still seemed distracted, glancing continuously back to the place where Robin had stood. "Perhaps you learned something when you entered his mind…?"

The dark haired girl shook her head. "Nothing."

Terra crossed to where the device lay on the ground. She knelt beside it, grasping the smooth metal surface gently with long, thin fingers. Glancing up, she surveyed her teammates. "If we can't find out how it works, then we'll have to figure it out for ourselves…"

Cyborg glanced at her, a strange look in his eyes. He moved to stand beside her, and practically snatched the device from her hands. "Figure out how to work it? Even if we could, it's already broken!" He gestured furiously at the long gouge marks in the metal from Beast Boy's attack.

The green-skinned boy's brow furrowed and he grimaced, showing fangs. "He was about to zap you with it!" He glared at Cyborg, angered by the accusation. "What was I supposed to do? Let him disintegrate you like he did Robin?"

"At least then it would still be in one piece, and we'd have a chance of getting him back!" Cyborg retorted, disregarding logic.

"Enough!" Raven's eyes burned white as she glared in the larger teen's direction. "The fact of the matter is, Robin is gone and we need to get him back. We have the device, and even if it's not operational right now, we can find out how to _fix_ it." The light faded from her eyes and she surveyed the room, addressing the remaining teens with a low, commanding tone. "In the past twelve hours, we've found the future persons of both Robin and Cyborg. Now both are dead, and our Robin is missing. Events are moving quickly, and where time travel is involved, there's no telling how much of it we have left until something else happens. Time itself as become an adversary—and it's something we can't afford to waste." She focused her eyes on Cyborg. "Right now, Cyborg, you're the closest link we have to figuring this out. You're the best with machines, and apparently it was your future self who invented this device. If anyone can figure out how to fix it, you can."

For a long moment, he was silent, looking back at her, silently fighting to control the anger that boiled within him, knowing she was right. Finally he looked back down at the device, gripping it tighter in his metal fist. "Yeah…" he strode stiffly towards the doorway. "I'm on it."

The four remaining titans watched as the door slid closed behind him. Starfire glanced around, seeming nervous. "Will he not require assistance in analyzing the device?"

Raven took a slow breath, replying softly, "It's probably best to let him work alone right now. When he needs us, he'll tell us."

Beast Boy blinked, his gaze shifting to the still, prone form of Victor. "What should we do…about him?"

Instead of responding to the smaller boy, Raven directed her gaze and her answer to Terra, focusing purposefully on the blonde. "We give him a proper burial."

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Late into the evening, Cyborg's anger had given way to frustration. He sat in one of his computer labs, staring at the large screen, eyeing the device from time to time and all the cords and plugs that connected it to his computer.

It hadn't been nearly as hard to decode the device as he'd initially thought it would be. In fact, he'd come quite long ways to understanding the device and its workings in only a few short hours. It was, in short, a time-warp machine, hardly surprising under the circumstances, and he'd been able to isolate and confirm several temporal equations. At the moment, however, he found himself stuck on one particular problem, although it was not the analysis that was really bothering him.

He was still angry about what had happened earlier. It had been his future self, after all, that had attacked Robin. And then, he'd managed to get himself into the same situation, forcing Beast Boy to attack and ultimately damage the very device that they needed to remedy the entire situation. Cyborg wondered absently if the damage done to the machine was causing the information and equations he'd figured out to be incorrect. He glanced at the deep gashes in the metal, more frustration rising. He decided not to think about it.

He caught a movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see Raven standing nearby, looking serious.

"What?" he asked, the word coming out a little sharper than he intended.

"You need to calm down, Cyborg," Raven stated bluntly.

"I am calm!" he snapped defensively, not in the mood to hear a lecture about controlling his emotions.

"It's not your fault."

For a moment Cyborg was silent. Then he turned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You feel responsible because it was your older self who caused this. And therefore you're associating yourself with the actions of a person that you believe you will become, and drawing the blame. You hate him and what he did, and in so doing, you hate yourself."

"Oh, thanks Raven, I'm glad I have you to write the textbooks on it for me, so I can understand it better."

"He was not you, and you are not him. If there's anything I've learned about so-called 'destiny', it's that _I choose who I am_." Raven gaze was direct, but not glaring. "With the demon living inside of me, I have no choice but to control who I am, and who I will be. I have known all my life the possibility of what I have the potential to become, but I also know that I have the power to change that. To change myself." She breathed. "Everyone has that ability, Cyborg, but few of us know the possibilities of our futures. You have just been granted that knowledge."

He turned slightly, looking up at her, silent.

"That knowledge is not a curse. It's not something that has been thrown to you by an inevitable fate to make you feel miserable and hateful. It is an advantage. Don't treat it as something that condemns you to become someone that you don't want to become. Use it. Embrace it. Understand it. And then…change it."

Cyborg drew a deep breath. He exhaled slowly, lifting a hand to his head and letting his eyes slide closed in exhausted defeat. "You're right," he admitted softly, heavily. For a long moment, the two dark figures remained suspended in silence, until Cyborg regained his calm and gave a half smile. "Thanks, Rae."

"Don't mention it," she turned to leave.

"And thanks for coming all the way down here to…cheer me up."

Her retreating figure moved towards the kitchen. "I didn't come down here just to cheer you up. I came to get some tea before I go to bed, and your unstable emotions were disturbing my frame of mind."

Cyborg rolled an eye and turned back to the computer, trying to remember that he was grateful. He knew that Raven meant well, even if she did have a funny way of showing it.

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Terra shifted in her bed to lie on her side, slightly inclining her head so as to catch a glimpse of the clock on her dresser. She let out a soft groan as she saw the time—almost 2am. She'd been trying to sleep for over three hours now, but it just wasn't happening.

She always had trouble sleeping when something was bothering her. It was annoying—she just wished she could sleep for a few hours and forget all about the problem. It was bad enough something had to eat away at her all during the day, why did it have to keep her awake at night too?

With a soft frustrated sigh, Terra rolled out of bed and onto her knees, rubbing at bleary eyes. Lifting a hand, she groped for the lamp near her bedside and switched it on, blinking in the sudden light. She sat on the floor, her back leaning against the bed, head tilted back onto the mattress, thinking.

She and Raven had buried Victor earlier. It had been simple, of course, especially with her abilities, but for some reason it had left her feeling uneasy. They had decided not to mark the grave.

Her thoughts turned to the other titans. Beast Boy and Starfire had watched the burial, including their presences not so much to show respect, but as to not show disrespect. Cyborg had remained in the tower, of course, working continuously on the device. He was probably still working, even now.

She felt like such an outsider. But then, wasn't she supposed to? She wasn't on this team to be a part of it—that part of her function had always been perfectly clear. So why did she feel so nervous about what had happened? Was she having doubts? Or was she just letting foolish hopes get in the way of her assignment?

Terra closed her eyes again, already bored of staring at the same spot on the ceiling. Slade had already given her so much—all of what he'd promised, and more. She owed him this much at least, didn't she?

And now there was the problem that was keeping her awake. Robin had disappeared—definitely not part of the plan. How was she supposed to keep an eye on him if he wasn't here? What if he never made it back? Even worse, what if he did, and something like this were to happen again? The thought had never even crossed her mind when she accepted the orders Slade had given her. Keep an eye on Robin, make sure he didn't get hurt. Simple enough, until accidents such as this were taken into account.

Today, she hadn't done anything about it. She hadn't been able to—none of them had. But it put her objective into a new light—what if Robin ever did get into a life-threatening situation? Just what exactly was she expected to do in order to keep him from getting hurt?

Shifting from her position beside the bed, Terra got down on hands and knees and reached under the headboard, pushing a shoebox out of the way and latching onto the battered shoulder bag that she knew was there. Dragging it from its hiding spot, she shook it free of dust and unlatched one of the side pockets.

There it was, just where she always kept it. A small communication device, not unlike the ones the Titans used. Only instead of being yellow and black with a large 'T' on the front, this one was a little smaller, more square, and marked with an 'S'.

Terra ran a hand over the communicator lightly, turning it and watching as the dim light from her lamp made different reflection patterns on the shiny metal surface. Should she tell him? He'd given it to her and instructed that it only be used in an emergency. This wasn't so much an emergency as it was an extremely unexpected turn of events.

Sighing, she placed the communicator back in the bag and shoved the whole thing under the bed again, making sure to place the shoebox and other various items in front of it. Robin's disappearance was bound to be something he wouldn't want to hear. She also didn't know enough about what was going on to be able to offer any kind of decent explanation to him. And besides, it was two in the morning. Satisfied with her excuses, Terra resolved to tell him later.

But she still wasn't going to be able to sleep. Getting to her feet, Terra shoved them into some slippers and crossed the room to pull her bathrobe out of the closet. Putting it on, she moved to the door with the intention of heading down to the kitchen. Maybe if she ate something, or got some hot chocolate, she'd be able to sleep.

As she moved down the hallways that were still a little unfamiliar sometimes, especially at night, she saw a light coming from under one of the doors. One of the computer labs, to be precise. Just as she'd thought—Cyborg was still working.

Terra halted at the doorway, uncertain, looking in through the opening at the flickering shadows that outlined the large teen's frame.

He glanced up, tired recognition lighting his expression slowly. "Oh, hey Terra."

"Hi," she said, surprised to see that his foul mood had turned. Emboldened by his calmness, she crossed the room to stand beside him as he turned his attention back to the screen. Looking at his face, it was easy to see how tired and haggard he was, even in the dim lighting. The human side of his face was positively drooping, and the flesh around the eye was puffy. "You know, you should probably get some sleep. You look awful." Terra never had been good at subtlety. She was usually too forward and blunt for her own good.

Cyborg heaved a sigh and blinked his human eye blearily. "I know, I know…but I'm a lot closer to figuring this out than I thought I would be. Look, I've even managed to identify the proper time signatures." He didn't seem to notice that Terra looked almost as sleep-deprived as he did.

Curious, Terra leaned closer to the screen to see what he was pointing at, forgetting that she had just told him to quit working and go to bed. And maybe if she focused on something, she wouldn't remember how tired she was.

Cyborg was indicating two different patterns that looked likes a series of lines, connected and broken, crisscrossing in some places, or running parallel in others. Both patterns looked like nothing more than big scribbles at first, but as she inspected it further, Terra could see that the two sets of lines were different.

"See, this time signature is us," Cyborg tapped the pattern on the right side of the screen, "And this other one is the older me."

"Time signature?" Terra repeated.

"It's kind of like a fingerprint, showing which timeline you come from. If that makes any sense." Cyborg tried to explain as he began typing more commands into the computer. "You know how there are all these theories on alternate time lines and parallel universes?" Without waiting for her response, he continued. "Well, the term 'parallel universe' is just a fancy name for an alternate timeline. See, we make choices everyday, like what time to get up, what route to take to work, and all that. One choice leads to one set of events, which lead to more choices. The basic theory behind parallel universes is that in one timeline, you make a choice to go the movies on Thursday night, while in the other universe, you decide to stay home and play video games on the same night instead. So the events that happen are different, which just goes to say that the timeline is different."

Terra had never been the intellectual type. She would rather do something than sit and think about it, and she'd never paid attention to scientific things, much less the complex theories that Cyborg was delving into. But so far he was using simple parallels for explanations, and she was able to follow what he was saying to a certain extent. "So," she ventured, "Our other Cyborg is from a different timeline."

"Yeah, but he not only came from a different timeline, he came from a different time completely. He's from the future of a parallel universe."

"This time signature shows what time and place he's from, then," Terra replied.

"Yeah. That's another thing that's weird about these. They're always changing a little bit. As you make the choices, you follow a certain timeline. And the different choices lead to different timelines, so as you choose which timeline you're following, the time signature changes to show exactly where and when you are."

Suddenly Terra thought she understood. "It a record of your history. Your time signature shows where you've been, and when. But it's always changing because you're still moving through time."

"That's right," Cyborg glanced at her quickly, slightly surprised. "You catch on quick." Turning back to the computer, he continued. "Although, there are basic structures in the time signature that will remain the same, because some timelines start out the same way, until the split off when different choices are made." To prove his point, he indicated a point in one of the time signatures on the screen that was exactly the same on the other. Three lines merged together at the same point, as another crossed between them diagonally. "See, these two parts in the print are exactly the same because there was a time when that older Cyborg was in the exact same time and place as I was. In other words, he and I followed the exact same choices. But the prints are different now, because and some point in his life, he made a decision that I didn't, or vice versa, and eventually we wound up living in different timelines, even though we're the same person."

"So wait, the time signature must indicate who you are, too, since different people are faced with different choices?" Terra asked.

"Well, kind of," Cyborg replied. "Although there's no biological data in a time signature, so you can't really tell who the person is. It basically just shows the timeline that the person followed, with some unique patterns to indicate what choices you've made. But even though different people make different choices, they are sometimes led to the same timeline. And of course, people's choices will affect others and pull them into the same time universe."

Now it was getting a little more confusing than Terra would have liked it to, especially at two in the morning. "But that would mean there's one universe for each choice presented to each person who has ever existed."

Cyborg nodded. "That's how the theories go. An infinite number wouldn't be big enough to hold all the potential parallels and timelines that supposedly exist." His face suddenly became a little sheepish. "But I'm kind of skipping over all that stuff, and just focusing on these two timelines."

Terra just nodded, trying to let all the information sink in.

Cyborg was tapping at the screen again, indicating the time signature of his older self. "I'll bet if we were to test Nightwing's body, it would have basically the same time signature as this."

"Even though he's dead?" Terra's eyebrow shot up, skepticism in her voice.

Shrugging, Cyborg responded. "Time leaves its mark, dead or alive. It's called aging."

"Then inanimate objects have the time signatures things, too, even though they don't make choices?"

"Their time signatures are based on the choices made around them, and which universe they are pulled into. And the signature will keep changing, because even a dead body or an inanimate object will continue to age and decay as time goes on."

It was interesting, if more than a bit mind-boggling, but Terra felt she had enough of a grasp on the subject understand what he was doing. "So you have all this information on where and when he came from, and where and when we are now," she said. "What do you do with it?"

"I want to be able to trace the path one of those wormholes took," the larger teen answered. "Because our priority right now is to find Robin. I was hoping that once I was able to isolate and interpret these time signatures, I'd know what to look for in the path going from one to another."

Terra narrowed her eyes slightly, trying to comprehend.

"Like you said," Cyborg continued, explaining quickly, "The individual lines and patterns in the time signature show where and when you've been. The whole signature together is like a point on a map, showing exactly where and when you are, you know, which timeline you're currently following. Our point in the timelines and multiple universes is here, in our signature. The other Cyborg's point in the timelines is there, in his signature. The route that he took to get from his point to ours was the rift, the wormhole that he made with that device."

"You're trying to track a path through time a space," Terra realized, a hint of incredulity in her voice.

"The wormhole is the path," Cyborg nodded once, "It's not hard to open—we already have the device to do that. The trick is to be able to control the path when it opens. I don't know which way it went when it hit Robin. We know that he left from our point in time and space, but we don't know where he ended up. I wanted to isolate these time signatures so that I would know what I'm looking for, so that I can recognize the time signature that Robin ended up in if I can find it."

"And if you do find it?" Terra prompted.

"Then I can use it to program a path from here to there. If I have both the starting and ending points, I can tell the wormhole which way to go. Which means we'll be able to follow Robin to wherever he went and bring him back safely."

"I hope so," Terra said softly, her intent genuine, even if it was for ulterior motives.

Cyborg glanced up at her, seeing the highlights in her face and hair from the monitor's weak glow. He gave a small smile. "I hope so, too."

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The basement of Ms. Malcolm's home, where Nightwing's body had been discovered, was empty, having been cleared out long since by the police department and hospital workers. It had taken a little over a full day for the body and all shreds of evidence to be discovered and removed, and of course it had needed to be cleaned afterward.

Now, however, it was deserted, along with the house under which it rested. Finding a dead body in their own home would be enough to unsettle just about anyone, and the unfortunate Ms. Malcolm had been no exception. Thoroughly frightened and traumatized by the experience, the elderly woman had left her residence with the intention of not returning for at least a week.

It was quite a good thing that she had done so, although she would never have a chance to see or understand why. Unknown to anyone, something was happening in the very same room where the dead body had been found.

In the center of the basement—in midair, to be exact—a light began to flicker. It had no source, as the electric lights were not functioning and the daylight had long since passed away into night. But nonetheless, a light was flickering, pale and sickly in its purple hue, somehow seeming bright and faint at the same time. It sprang to life in an instant, only to die away in the next. Then it would come again, in a slightly different place than before, and sometimes more than one light would erupt at once. It was much like a miniature, silent display of purple lighting bolts, erratic and exquisite.

Alone in their deserted existence, the strange lights continued to flicker.

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	4. Finding Robin

Author's Notes: To anyone who actually still remembers this story, I am so sorry that this update has taken so long. Hopefully the rest of the updates will be moving along a little better now that my school is finally over.

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The light was everywhere, streaks and flashes of bright purple blinding him. They gave off strange, sharp warmth that seemed to hit his body in uneven waves, advancing and receding. Gravity was somehow absent, and he could no longer tell which way was up or down, whether he was moving at all, forward or backward. Everything was silent and explosive, still and in motion, full of light and black with darkness, all at once. He didn't know where he was or what was happening. Nothing made sense.

Then something pulled him downward sharply, and with his weight suddenly returned, his knees buckled and he fell in a heap on a hard surface. For a long moment, the disoriented feeling lingered and the lights, which were no longer there, still seemed to dance before his eyes.

When his vision was finally clear again, Robin raised his head to see where he was. The eyes behind the mask widened in shock as he realized what he was seeing.

It was a horrible desert of metal and stone, devoid of any life. The entire landscape was awash in nothing but shades of gray, the lifeless, colorless remnants of homes and buildings scattered among the jagged rocks and rough, dry earth. Not a single blade of grass could be seen anywhere, not even sparse, scraggly shrubs had succeeded growing in the wasteland. There were no trees, no birds, no insects humming. A fine gray dust littered every surface like a layer of ash. Everywhere the sky was overcast, thick with clouds as dark and dreary as the land they covered. Even the air itself was frighteningly still, as though it were afraid to make any breeze. Complete and utter stillness hung in the atmosphere, as thick and heavy as darkness.

Before the horizon could be seen the shattered, crumbling remains of a city skyline. It was that, and only that, which made Robin realize exactly where he was.

Home.

This was his city, completely destroyed.

"Oh god…" His horrified whisper seemed to echo in the all-encompassing silence. This was not possible. Something was horribly wrong.

Getting slowly to his feet, he turned in every direction, overwhelmed by the totality of the destruction. No matter where he looked, there was nothing. Even what remained of the city was a silent, worthless shell of deserted wasteland.

Swallowing the uneasiness and fear that came with the realization of how wrong this was, Robin forced his feet to shuffle forward towards where the jagged pieces of buildings pierced the colorless sky. He couldn't stay here, in this dusty realm of nothing. He had to go somewhere, anywhere. He needed to find people, discover what had caused this sudden nightmare.

As he moved on his trek across the flat, dusty wasteland, the distant buildings slowly grew larger, closer. Before too long, he could see some of the rows that had been streets.

To the right within ruins, something moved. Blinking, Robin turned.

It was small and familiar figure, completely covered in a long black cloak. It moved fluidly, as though floating over the ground, not walking. And it was coming towards him. Robin immediately recognized who it was.

Giving a shout of relief at seeing someone familiar, he waved and dashed forward. "Raven!"

The cloaked figure did not react in any way to his shout of recognition. It continued on its steady, gliding path towards him. As it drew closer, Robin slowed his excited advance.

Though she liked the shadow of her hood, Raven's face and eyes were always somewhat visible beneath her shroud. This figure, however, had nothing but shadow. Where his teammate's familiar face should have been was a void of blackness.

Robin stopped, staring. The figure's faceless head was still looking in his direction, moving ever forward at the infuriatingly emotionless pace. This was not Raven, Robin realized. But it had seemed exactly like her…

Suddenly beneath the hood, two glowing white slits of eyes erupted into existence, and the cloaked figure's pace doubled as it darted forward through the air. Robin leapt backward in a hasty retreat as he realized it was coming to attack him. In confirmation of his thoughts, a large piece of rock several feet away suddenly became enshrouded in black and took on a life of its own, flying towards him through the air at a dangerous speed.

Robin jumped aside to avoid the projectile, now thoroughly confused. This thing looked like Raven and obviously had her power, but there was no way that it could be his real teammate and friend. There was nothing beneath that hood except for the strange glowing eyes, and as it drew closer to him, it's cloak flapping slightly in the breeze it created, Robin could see that there was no body beneath the cloak either.

It stopped in midair again, a few yards away this time, the eyes focused on him. Robin stumbled back into a crouch and assumed a defensive pose, waiting for it to make the next move. He watched, scrutinizing, waiting…

Suddenly the cloaked figure was blown backwards by an explosion of whitish-green light and smoke that burst open on its chest. In the split second that it was blinded by the unforeseen attack, a boy darted in front of Robin's vision, latching onto his arm as he continued moving, pulling Robin with him.

As Robin felt himself yanked away from the scene of battle, he resisted, out of instinct. Feeling Robin's unwillingness, the boy continued to pull, only slowing fractionally to turn and hiss over his shoulder, "Move it!"

Robin looked back to see the thing recovering, and starting to give pursuit. "Wait!" he shouted to the boy, who was still dragging him at an amazing pace, "Why are we—"

His question was cut off as he gasped in pain. The boy had made a sudden, sharp turn to the right, and nearly yanked Robin's arm off his shoulder in the process. Wincing, Robin latched onto his now-throbbing shoulder with his free hand, and struggled to keep pace with the boy. Feeling his lungs burn from lack of oxygen, and his legs almost numb, Robin suddenly realized just how _fast_ they were going.

He didn't have much time to think about, however, because the boy was now shouting something at him. "We have to jump—don't let go!"

With the jarring pain in his arm, letting go was the one thing Robin wanted to do most. Taking a second to give another quick glance behind him, Robin could see that their pursuer was gaining. How was it that everyone could run so fast all of a sudden?

"Now!" the boy yelled.

Robin kicked off the ground as hard as he could and felt himself lift away from solid ground. The boy's grip on his arm suddenly became tighter, and Robin felt his arm yanked painfully again as the boy somehow jumped higher and faster, and pulled Robin with him. Gritting his teeth against the pain, Robin hung on.

In the next instant, he felt the ground rush up against his feet with a jarring sensation. Instinctively, Robin let his knees buckle and began to roll, relieving most of the shock from the hard landing. Pulling himself into a crouch, he looked up.

Spread out behind him was a deep gorge, which was, apparently, what he and the boy had just jumped across. Robin gaped at the distance between where he now sat and the opposite side. The level that he was now on stood higher than the ground on the other side, where the pursuing being now perched, shrieking at the gorge's edge, apparently unable to follow.

The boy bent over in front of Robin, catching his attention. "Hey," the boy said, kneeling beside him. "You okay?"

Robin inspected his new companion. The boy didn't look to be any older than he was, with a wide face and rough, mischievous manner. He was taller than Robin, but not by much. His skin had an amber hue, which seemed strange with the shock of red hair that was messily cut and hung in front of bright green eyes. Two pointed ears could be seen poking out from the sides of his head. He was wearing a rather drab outfit of gray, brown, dark green, and other earth-tone colors that matched the landscape well. The tunic-like shirt and loose fitting pants were a stark contrast to his complexion, bright eyes, and red hair.

"I'm all right," Robin answered, rubbing at his shoulder.

"Sorry about that," the boy said.

Robin shook his head. "It's okay. But why did we have to run away like that? I could've handled that thing."

The redhead raised an eyebrow and gave Robin a disdainful look that somehow seemed familiar. "What are you, stupid? You don't fight the Shadows!"

Now it was Robin's turn to raise an eyebrow. "Shadows?"

"Duh!" The boy gestured widely across the gorge to the thing that was still standing on the other side, watching them. "What planet have you been living on? The Shadows—Her minions!" At Robin's genuinely confused look, the boy turned quizzical. "Boy, you really don't know about them, do you?"

"Sorry," Robin answered.

The boy gave a dry laugh. "Well, that explains why you picked a fight with one, then. I wasn't sure if you were the gutsiest guy I ever saw, or the dumbest one." He grinned, revealing small fangs in his smile.

"So, I'm guessing you just saved my life then?" Robin asked.

The boy's expression suddenly turned dark. "No one who's ever fought a Shadow came back alive."

Robin looked back across the gorge at the dark figure that was still watching them. "I see." He stood and faced his new friend, extending a hand. "Well, then, I guess I owe you one. What's your name?"

The boy gave another half-grin as he grasped the offered hand. "Robyn."

------------------------------

"I'm stuck!" Cyborg rubbed a hand over his skull plating, gritting his teeth in frustration. "I can't figure out how to track the rift that Robin disappeared through! There isn't enough information! The only time signature points that I have are ours, and my older self's. But that doesn't help at all, because that means even if the device was working right, I could only plot a course through the rift from our time to the time he came from."

"But, isn't that where Robin went?" Beast Boy sounded confused. "I mean, he got hit with the same worm-tunnel-thingy that Victor used. So, doesn't that mean he's in Victor's time period now?"

Cyborg shook his head. "I doubt it. He was messing with the device and trying to plot in a different course when we found him. It was probably unstable to begin with, and not set to any particular point in the time line. So Robin could have ended up anywhere."

Beast Boy's ears drooped slightly "Oh."

"Perhaps we should go to this place in the future," Starfire suggested, speaking slowly as if unsure of herself. "If that is where your older self came from, and where this problem started, perhaps we can go there and find some answers that could aid us in our research here."

For a moment, silence greeted her idea. Then Terra cocked her head in agreement. "That makes sense."

"It's a good place to start," Raven put in.

"Yeah, but I still need to fix this thing," Cyborg gestured at the device.

"What do you need to fix it?" Raven asked, her eyes slightly narrowed and a serious tone behind her words.

Cyborg shook his head, picking up the device. "Well, when Beast Boy broke it—"

"I _said_ I was sorry!"

"We know, Beast Boy, it's okay, already," Terra said impatiently. "Let Cyborg finish."

Sulking, Beast Boy was quiet.

Cyborg continued, pointing at the damaged part of the device. "When Beast Boy hit it, he only damaged the part that accesses the time stream. The rest of it, which deals with navigation of the time stream and opening the actual rift, is fine. But I need to find a replacement component for something that can affect time in space, in order to be able to access it."

"Oh, great," Terra was suddenly facetious. "Why don't I just run down to the convenience store and pick up that spare part for you. I'm sure all the shelves are stocked with them." She was met with four sets of icy stares.

Otherwise ignoring the blonde's rude comment, Raven faced Cyborg. "When Slade tricked us with the fake chronoton detonator, he used a chromium core. Would that work as a replacement?"

Brow furrowed, Cyborg seemed to be thinking as he replied. "Well…yeah, I think so, but where are you going to get—"

Pulling her hood up, Raven was already moving as though she were ready to leave. "We'll find Slade, and take one." She looked around at her teammates deliberately. "With all the technology he has access to, it shouldn't be hard to get chromium from him. He probably still has some left from the chronoton detonator."

Cyborg started to rise from his seat, but Raven shot him a quick look. The larger teen was a mess; he hadn't slept all night, he was physically and mentally exhausted. She wanted to tell him to get some rest, but she knew him too well. He was almost as stubborn as Robin sometimes—he would balk at any suggestion of sleep and insist on coming with them. But she still couldn't have him coming along; perhaps she could convince him to stay if she made him think it would be more helpful that way. "Cyborg, it would be better if you stayed here to keep working on the calculations. If you can have it ready by the time we get back, we can get to Robin faster."

For a moment, it looked as though he might argue with her. Then he leaned back into the chair and nodded. Cyborg watched as his four comrades left the room, setting out to search the city. With a sigh, he rubbed a hand over his forehead and returned to his research.

------------------------------

Terra was relieved when they split up to search the city, mainly areas where Slade had hidden before. Raven felt that his previous lairs were the best places to start looking for clues as to his whereabouts now, which made a lot of sense.

It hadn't taken long for Terra to figure out that the pale teenager was quite intelligent, almost as observant and resourceful as Robin. And besides that, her empathic and telekinetic abilities were formidable. Of all the Titans, Terra worried most about Raven discovering her ulterior motives.

So it was that much more of a relief when Raven gave them all separate locations to search. Terra followed the instructions she'd been given, to head towards the waterfront and search the warehouses by the piers. But when she reached her destination, she did not proceed to scour the area for clues. Instead, she activated the communication device that none of the other Titans knew about. She wasn't looking forward to this conversation, but if she didn't tell him now, it would be far worse.

The device didn't even crackle as she opened the connection. He answered immediately, as though he'd been expecting her to contact him all along. The low, smooth voice sounded just as hypnotic and captivating over the communication device as it did when he was speaking in person. It was almost enough to give her chills.

"What is it, Terra?"

She gave a little sound of uncertainty before launching into her explanation. "Listen, I know you said this is only for emergencies, but the Titans are searching all over the city for you, and they're bound to find your hiding place sooner or later."

"The Titans are always searching for me, Terra. You do not need to inform me of something I already know."

Terra kicked herself mentally. She should have known he'd be one step ahead of the Titans already—he always was.

"Yeah, well, they're looking for chromium, and they think you have some, so they're coming to take it."

There was a moment of silence before he replied this time. "And why are they in such desperate need of chromium?"

This was the part of the conversation she wanted to avoid. "Well…Robin disappeared. It's really hard to explain, because I don't know the details on everything, but it has to do with time travel. Robin fell through this rift in time and space and the Titans think he's somewhere in the future, so they're trying to use this time-rift-opening device so they can go through and get him back. But it's broken, and they need the chromium to fix it."

Now the silence on the other end was unbearable. Terra waited, wincing, for him to berate her for not telling him sooner, or for not preventing it. Instead, he spoke even softer than before.

"I see."

She blinked. Robin was the center of everything Slade planned. She had been sure that Robin's disappearance would upset him. But then, Terra reasoned to herself, most of the time Slade was almost as controlled and emotionless as Raven.

"Well then, I suppose I should prepare to greet my guests when they arrive." Slade's voice was normal again, but it sounded more like he was musing to himself than talking to her. "I believe I still have enough chromium left to meet their needs…" Then the directness returned to his manner, and Terra knew he was giving her an order. "You do remember your way here, don't you Terra?"

She nodded before remembering that he couldn't see her. "Of course," she answered quickly.

"Good. See to it that our young friends don't have too much trouble finding their way."

------------------------------


	5. Meetings

**Author's Notes**: Huzzah! I finally got my stories on an internet-accessible computer! In case anyone hasn't read my profile, my stories got stuck on my old computer due to non-existent CD drives and broken floppy drives... Anyway, I finally got them on a computer where I can post them, so here's a quick update. And since I have been taking such a long time with this story, I wanted to thankthose loyal reviewerswho managed to stick with me after chapter three.

**scathac's warrior** -Heh heh,Terra hater, are you? I'm actually not a big fan of her character myself, but she has so much potential for angst and evilness and all that, I just love using her in my plot lines.There's plenty more of her in the chapters to come, because she plays a major part in how the ending works out.

**Raidersrule76** - I'm glad you like the post-apocalyptic universe, becauseit's actually turning out to be notoriously difficult to write. In fact, I think it's my least favorite part of this story... Oh well. At any rate, there's a big chapter coming up soonthat will explain a lot as far as how it came to be that way.

**Flying Star** - Yup, you spelled 'Robyn' right! See, they _do_ have the same name, but I had to make something different so that people reading wouldn't get the characters confused. And I'm sure you've got a good idea as to who my little redhead is already...

**SoulPoet** - Good theories! You are right on the money with some things, but way off with others. It's cool though, it was great to hear how you think the plot is going to develop! I'd love to hear anyone's ideas; it lets me know how I'm doing with writing the plot and if I'll be able to surprise you. So by all means, let me know what other theories you have!

**oatmeal girl** - Heh heh, like I mentioned before, I love using a creepy, evil Terra. And this is a slight AU story, so I get to work with her any way I want...bwuuuaaa haa haaa...

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The red-haired Robyn led his newfound companion through the small canyons of the rocky, sand-strewn wasteland that he called home. The tall, green-eyed youth picked his way through the maze of boulders and gaps as though it were as familiar to him as his own name. The dark-haired boy who shared the same name followed closely behind him.

"So, remind me again where we're going?" Robin copied his guide in a small leap across a harmless-looking patch of sand.

"To the Underground," the redhead called over his shoulder. "Where all the Survivors live." Disappearing around a large outcropping of rock, Robyn continued speaking. "Don't worry, when we get there I'll introduce you to my parents—they'll explain everything."

Robin rounded the corner to join his newfound friend, and found him closely inspecting a miniscule crack in the sheer rock face at the base of the canyon wall. Curious, Robin raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

Digging the tips of his fingers into the crack, Robyn gave a heave. To his observer's great surprise, the crack widened as that part of the canyon wall began to swing slowly outward, making a harsh grinding sound in the process. As the redhead continued to pull, Robin realized that it was actually a door in the canyon wall, made from a large, thick slab of rock that was easily twice the size of any normal doorway.

When the door was open wide enough for two boys to slip through and into the cavernous tunnel that lay beyond, Robyn moved inside and gestured for the dark-haired teen to follow. Once inside, Robin could see that the door had no hinges, but had merely been stood on end in a certain position to allow it to swing outward. A crude handle had been attached on the inside, which Robyn quickly grabbed onto and heaved the massive door shut.

Not only was the redhead amazingly fast, he was strong, too.

"So, can everybody do that here?" Robin queried, gesturing at the door.

Robyn held up a hand, now lit with a greenish-white glow that illuminated the tunnel they had entered. The redhead gave a sideways grin. "Nah, the main entrance to the Underground is way over on the other side of the territory, near the ocean. This is my entrance, since it's closer to the border of Her territory and I'm always crossing back and forth." He began moving down the rocky corridor. "Come on, my Mom's the leader of the Survivors, she'll want to meet you."

Robyn began moving down the stone passageway, and Robin followed. Both were silent now, the redhead calm with familiarity of the place and the newcomer gazing about in curiosity, watching shadow flicker against light and seeing the patterns they revealed in the stone.

As they continued, Robin grew aware of sounds as they echoed through the tunnel. _Voices_, he thought to himself.

Soon they encountered an area that was already lighted, with sconces and burning torches fixed to the walls. The sounds of people were constant and close now, characteristic of a place that was well inhabited.

Robin let his gaze wander, looking curiously as more tunnels came into sight, branching off or coming in. There were some tunnel openings that had been closed off by lengths of hanging cloth.

Robyn nodded as he noticed his smaller companion looking curiously at them. "Those are family chambers," the redhead explained, his point emphasized as two small children ran out from behind one of the nearby curtained doorways, giggling as they chased each other down the lighted corridors. "Mine is farther ahead, near the main cavern."

Robin glanced around, noting the strange smoothness of the stone walls. The inside of these tunnels didn't have the texture of rock that had been naturally eroded by water, wind, or animal life. "These caverns aren't natural, are they?"

Robyn shook his head. "No, they're not. All of these tunnels and chambers are ones that we made. But past the main cavern, there are natural caves that were cut by an underground river. That's where we get our fresh water."

"What about food?"

"When you have to live underground, you get what you can." Robyn gave a shrug. "We eat a lot of mushrooms and bugs."

"Bugs?" The dark-haired boy made a face.

Robyn laughed. "Why, what do you eat where you come from? Come to think of it, where _do_ you come from, anyway?"

Robin was silent for a moment. "I'm not really sure right now."

His companion shot him a strange look. "How can you not know where you're from?"

Robin gave a sigh, casting his glance upward at the shadows that danced on the carved ceilings. "I thought I was from here…but it wasn't like this."

The taller boy's brow furrowed. "That doesn't make any sense."

"It doesn't make any sense to me, either."

Robyn paused next to a covered tunnel opening, looking curiously at his follower. "You're really weird, you know that?"

Robin had to give a smirk at that. He shrugged. "You're not the first one to think so."

The red haired boy shook his head and turned to push aside the hanging cloth, stepping through. "Hey, Mom! I'm back." He gestured for Robin to follow him inside.

Robin stepped through after him, letting the cloth fall back into place over the opening. He had entered a small, carved chamber, furnished with more cloth blankets that were spread on the ground. He could see two more curtained doorways branching off from the initial chamber.

A voice called back to them from behind one of the curtained areas, and Robin could almost swear it was familiar. "Did you find her?"

The redhead called back. "No, but I found someone else."

In response, the cloth curtain drew back and a woman stepped through. She was tall and slender, her skin a vibrant amber hue, her eyes a contrasting, vivid green. Flame-red hair was cropped short, save for two long strands of bangs that framed the sides of her face.

Robin's eyes widened with indisputable recognition. "Starfire…"

---------------------------

As the door burst open behind him, the man turned slowly to greet the guests he had been expecting.

"Titans," Slade nodded in recognition, unlocking his arms from behind his back to spread them slightly in a peaceful gesture. "Welcome."

It always bothered Beast Boy to no end, how Slade could be so calm like that. Especially when they'd just found his newest hideout and totally busted him. He opened his mouth for a clever retort, but someone behind him spoke first.

"Hey, Slade! Skip the pleasantries, we're not here for afternoon tea." Terra's voice was rough as she glared across the room at him and clenched her fists.

Slade's visible eye slid across his mask to rest on the blonde. "Harsh words coming from such a dainty young lady. Quite the actress, aren't we, Terra?"

She reddened at his remark and went silent.

Returning his focus of attention to the other three teenagers, Slade continued. "What brings you here, my young friends?"

Starfire was hovering, eyes lit, green orbs of energy ready at her hands. She narrowed her gaze and spoke darkly. "We are not your friends."

"Look, Slade," Beast Boy spoke up. "We need chromium, and we know that you have some."

"The Titans coming to me for help," Slade cocked his head, as though amused. "How ironic." When none of the teens made a reply, he continued, hiding a smile. "What could make the Teen Titans, defenders of justice, saviors of the city, come crawling to this level?"

"Robin's missing," Raven answered quickly and bluntly, ignoring Slade's stab at their course of action. "We need it to find him."

"Ah," Slade gave the slightest feign of surprise. "How very interesting." The tone behind his voice seemed to smile as he lifted a hand, toying with something spherical and metallic. "Well, we can't have our beloved heroes without their leader, now can we?"

He crossed the room, his footsteps secure and deliberate. He stopped a few feet in front of Raven, extending his palm to offer the metal sphere to her. "And really, I am quite insulted. There is no need for such a show of violence and distrust. You have but to ask, and I am at your disposal. After all," he paused, a taunting note now entering his voice. "What's mine is yours, and what's yours is mine."

Beast Boy let out an involuntary growl at his words, but Terra remained silent.

Raven looked at Slade, her expression a mixture of disdain and suspicion. There was a twinge of silence, and a casing of black energy surrounded the tiny sphere, lifting it from Slade's palm and guiding it towards the cloaked teen. Raven lifted her hand to receive the small piece of metal, then tucked it into her belt. Without a word she turned and began to move briskly away, glad when her teammates followed suit.

But as the four teens moved to leave, they could hear Slade's voice echo after him as he had the final word. "Be sure to bring my apprentice back safely, now."

So that was it. Terra felt something twinge in her stomach, an emotion she couldn't place. That was why Slade had given them the chromium so willingly. He wanted Robin back safe and sound just as much as the Titans did.

Each of the Titans caught the meaning behind his final words. And for some reason, just realizing that made their success seem much more like defeat.

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End file.
